Eating differently: Autism, ARFID and food

In this episode Catherine Asta is joined by autistic psychotherapist and registered dietitian Camilla Ferraro to explore autism, ARFID and our relationship with food.

Drawing on her professional expertise, alongside her own lived experience, Camilla explores why autistic eating differences are so often misunderstood and why what can look like "picky eating" from the outside can be something much more complex.

Together they explore ARFID (Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder) and the differences between food preferences, sensory-based eating differences and eating difficulties that can have a significant impact on someone’s health, wellbeing and everyday life. They discuss the role of sensory processing, distress, executive functioning and the eating environment, as well as the shame and judgement many autistic people experience around what, when and how they eat.

The conversation also looks at how parents, carers and professionals can better support autistic people around food by moving away from pressure, forcing and rigid expectations and towards curiosity, choice and agency. And they explore why feeling safe is so important when it comes to eating, the value of understanding individual sensory preferences and why sometimes seemingly small adjustments to mealtimes can make a meaningful difference.

Camilla reminds us that when we remove judgement and become curious about what someone’s eating differences are communicating, we can begin to build a safer and more positive relationship with food.

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